This invention relates to a method for making pull-on disposable wearing articles provided with fastener means.
Pull-on wearing articles, including pull-on disposable diapers by way of example, have already been proposed wherein transversely opposite side edges of the front waist region are connected with those of the rear waist region by releasable and reusable fastener means. For example, WO 01/87209 A1 (REFERENCE) discloses disposable training pants 500 and a method for making the same as illustrated in FIGS. 10 and 11 accompanying the specification of this patent application. In the pants 500, each side edge of the front waist region 522 is provided on its inner surface with first fastening means 582 while each side edge of the rear waist region 524 is provided on its outer surface with second fastening means 584 adapted to cooperate with the first fastening means 582. The first fastening means 582 may comprise, for example, a hook-type fastener and the second fastening means 584 may comprise, for example, a loop-type fastener. In the process illustrated in FIG. 11, a continuous chassis web 532 contouring the pants 500 runs from the left toward the right as viewed in FIG. 11. The front waist region 522 has front waist elastic members 554 attached to its inner surface and the rear waist region 524 has rear elastic members attached to its inner surface. On both sides of a boundary line 592 extending between each pair of the adjacent pants 500, the first fastening means 582 are respectively attached and then, between these adjacent first fastening means 582, 582, the chassis web 532 is partially cut away to define a gap 579. On the inner surface of the front waist region 522, the second fastening means 584 is releasable attached to each pair of the adjacent first fastening means 582, 582 so as to extend across the gap 579. Though not illustrated, after the chassis web 532 has been folded back with the inner surface thereof inside, the inner surface of the rear waist region 524 is bonded to the second fastening means 584. Then, the chassis web 532 is cut along the boundary lines 592 to obtain individual pants 500 shown in FIG. 10.
Referring to FIG. 11, the continuous chassis web 532 runs on an endless belt from the left toward the right. While the chassis web 532 is held in close contact with the endless belt under a vacuum suction pressure, there is a possibility that the respective front waist regions 522 lined up in a machine direction successively with interposition of the gaps 579 might be affected by a tensile force serving to drive rightward. It is likely therefore that the respective front waist regions 522 might be misaligned or distorted on the endless belt. Consequentially, there is an anxiety that the front waist regions 522 of the individual pants 500 continuously output through this process might have random shapes. Compared to the case in which the chassis web 532 is still not provided with the front waist elastic members 554, the chassis web 532 having already been provided with the front waist region elastic members 554 will be more likely to suffer from this problem because of a contractile force of these elastic members 554 exerted on the chassis web 532.